European Solidarity Corps
The European Solidarity Corps (ESK) is a voluntary service set up by the EU Commission . The service aims to help 18 to 30 year olds with emergencies in Europe and with volunteer and employment projects.
target
For example, the European Solidarity Corps is supposed to help in major disasters such as earthquakes in European countries. The participants should also be used for longer-term projects in refugee aid or environmental protection .
Participation requirements and structure
People who are citizens of an EU country or who are legally resident in the European Union or in Iceland , Liechtenstein , Macedonia , Norway and Turkey and who are between 18 and 30 years old can apply for the service for two to twelve months . However, registration is possible from the age of 17. Authorities, non-governmental organizations, companies and institutions guided by the idea of solidarity must meet the requirements as a host organization and commit to the Charter of the European Solidarity Corps.
Eight EU programs currently support the European Solidarity Corps:
- Erasmus + program with the European Voluntary Service (EVS)
- EU Program for Employment and Social Innovation (EaSI)
- LIFE funding program for the environment, nature conservation and climate policy
- Europe for Citizens of the Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA)
- Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF)
- European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) (through the INTERREG program )
- European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD)
- EU Health Programs of the Consumer, Health, Agriculture and Food Executive Agency (CHAFEA).
Volunteer projects
Participants in volunteer projects do unpaid full-time volunteering and the European Solidarity Corps builds on the European Voluntary Service (EVS), which has been in existence since 1996 (EU program Erasmus + Youth in Action), and other EU funding programs. As a rule, the participant receives food, travel expenses, insurance and pocket money.
Employment projects
Participants in employment projects receive a job with an employment contract and a wage in accordance with the local legal and collective bargaining conditions, as well as an apprenticeship position with an apprenticeship contract and an internship position with an employment or internship contract, plus a maintenance contribution.
development
On September 14, 2016, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker announced the creation of the European Solidarity Corps. The first registrations for the corps took place on December 7, 2016.
By 2018, around 70,000 people had already registered and almost 7,000 are already doing a service or an internship. On September 11, 2018, the EU Parliament approved further funding for two years for up to 100,000 people in the amount of 375.6 million euros. From 2021 there are plans for an even more extensive program for the period 2021 to 2027 with a budget of 1.26 billion euros.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ European Solidarity Corps - EU Commission starts new volunteer service . In: Deutschlandfunk . ( deutschlandfunk.de [accessed December 8, 2016]). European Solidarity Corps - EU Commission starts new volunteer service ( Memento of the original from December 8, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ EU Solidarity Corps finally decided. In: Deutsche Welle . Retrieved September 11, 2018 .
